TEAM ENGAGEMENT REPORT 2020

Engagement report sounds fancy, doesn’t it? But then, we’re proud as punch to share this: our first-ever team engagement report.

We surveyed the wonderfully eclectic collection of misfits and outliers that make up ‘the team’. This is a summary of what they told us.

Disclaimer

We checked if the team were happy to share their feedback directly. They said it was fine. We’ve anonymised this to make sure everyone felt comfortable.

I’d like to welcome you to this, our first ever Team Engagement report. Sounds corporate AF huh? But it’s super important to know how the extraordinary gaggle of misfits I have the pleasure of calling the team think about the company they work for.

There are a couple of big things I’d like to mention that have had a real personal impact on me from the feedback you’ve given. The first one is ‘Fucking hell! and Thank You’! I’m talking here about the way you really get, support and live by our culture and values. It’s one thing to say what they are, but quite another to live them every single day and to respect them the way you all clearly do. To say I’m humbled is an understatement.

The other big shout out for me is the respect you have for the team and each other; without that we wouldn’t succeed, and it makes me proud of the team we have and will carry on building. Finally though, I hear something else from the feedback; living the values and having a great team doesn’t make patchy processes and heavy workloads OK. We’ve got that message and things are going to change. Quickly and effectively. I’m looking forward to changing the way agencies are run, making clients want to tattoo our brand over their faces and ensuring that when we grow, society and the planet benefits.

I love you all.

We wanted to know everything, what you love, hate, feel a bit ‘meh’ about or are desperate to have. To make this proper and impartial, we asked Jo Faiers, Founder of HR Rockstars to manage the survey for us. She has put together this report and her involvement means that the survey is confidential, anonymous, and that she can hold our feet to the fire about our action planning. The report will take you through highlights from the responses – everything will be transparent and you can see the full, unedited responses, including all the comments, in the ‘Detailed Responses to the Survey’ section of this document.

It’s worth acknowledging that the sample size of 6 respondents is the very smallest number that can really be said to give anonymity in a survey like this; having seen the report it doesn’t look like there will be any issues, but if there are, please let Jo know; she is also available for you to raise anything that you either didn’t feel comfortable to raise in the survey (or just plain forgot to!). Either way anything you raise with her will be kept anonymous too.

WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?

Thanks a million. Thanks for your honesty. Thanks for your eloquence. Thanks for taking time to complete the survey so thoughtfully. It’s appreciated. Why? Well, this feedback is the foundation on which we’re going to build our little PR house into a beautiful castle befitting of its inhabitants.

There are some amazing positives to take away from this report. There’s a lot of love at DCW - for each other and our clients. You’re big fans of our team, our culture and our values.

But, we know we’re not perfect.

Our processes aren’t as good as they need to be. You need the best tools to do a brilliant job. And you could do with some super sexy templates to make your lives simpler and DCW’s client service rock. There’s plenty of work to be done. So, what’s the plan?

First, we’re going to analyse the feedback, look at the trends and report back. That part’s already complete. That’s why you’re reading this report now.

Second, we’re going to discuss the findings as a team.

Next up we’ll develop a strategy that’s tailored and relevant.

Then we’ll get on and deliver it.

What kind of stuff are we going to do? Most of you told us that introducing mental health support should be a key priority. And almost everyone said they’d like access to a gym or ClassPass-style benefits. We’re looking at both already, but really, that’s only the beginning.

We want to build an amazing business. But we know that we can only do that by looking after ourselves and each other. I can almost hear the Countdown clock telling me that I’m out of time. But there’s just one more thing to say - maybe two.

Reading through this report it felt like the time was right for a Carlsberg. No, not an actual pint. I’d like to think that I would select another brew, given the choice. The point is, if Don’t Cry Wolf did staff surveys they’d probably be the most honest and most transparent surveys in the world.

You brought the honesty so we’re bringing the transparency. That’s why we’re publishing this document. It’ll be available in full on our website.

Don’t worry, you’re being consulted first. Your words won’t make their way into the world without your OK. But we’re serious about celebrating the great things and solving the challenging things, so what better way to hold ourselves accountable?

It’s time to sign-off. The thing is, John said he loved you, so really, I think it’s better for me to end with a ‘thanks, and all the best’.

But also, let’s make this the best damn agency you’ve ever seen.

AND A FEW FROM SARA TOO

People said they love working here, they told us the colleagues that they work with and the working environment makes coming into work enjoyable and not a chore. Well….thank goodness for that.

Our culture

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

“The people, the ethos, the flexibility, great clients, we don’t sell out, we’re honest, brave and do the right thing even when it’s the hardest option.”

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

The team showed they are fully bought into the ethos of Don’t Cry Wolf and described in their own words that we are a no-bullshit, honest and transparent comms agency. This made us delirious with happiness as it’s the values and the mission that makes us a different type of business.

Mission & Values Transparency with our clients:

83% of the gang said that we are completely transparent with our clients highlighting the fact that the total transparency between each-other has been nurtured with those that pay us!

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

“Our mission: to become famous, famous for telling the truth and standing up for what we believe in both as Don’t Cry Wolf and through our clients. Our values: no bullshit, honesty, and accountability”

“We have very transparent relationships with each other and clients”

BAD

People told us that processes need a bit of work Our handbooks need to be sharpened up so that we’re all singing from the same hymn sheet and that if the senior management were to go off on a 7 week vacation to the Maldives, the team would have a perfect playbook from which to operate.

Processes

“The only ‘crappy thing’ about my job is that there’s a lot of admin I have to get my head around before I start doing the exciting stuff, like pitching clients or working on developing the creatives.”

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

The amount of workload for the team can be challenging. People have said that things can be last minute.

This coincides with our processes and resources needing some extra attention and making sure we make our hiring process more efficient. But, we also need to make sure we’re equipping the team with some epic time management training and looking at where we can shed some unnecessary admin.

Time managementThe team needs a bit more support at the front line. People said hiring either a consultant or admin/press office would help support the rest of the team. Time to expand the family!

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

Resources

“I often find when I have a lot of work to do I struggle with prioritising the most important tasks, which results in me mismanaging my time”

“Another consultant, to help support the rest of the team would help greatly by sharing the workload and freeing time up to improve processes and support training.”

INBETWEEN

We can always do more here We get the big picture right, but a focus on some of the more fundamentals is key.

Training: Pay and Feedback

Firstly, people are chuffed with their pay, which is good to know.

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

IN THE TEAM’S WORDS

Implementing a ‘foundation’ level training schedule for different levels of skills will give the team the tools they need to expand their knowledge and confidence.

But, more needs to be done for continuous recognition and consistent recognition throughout the year. So, looking at ways we can keep people even more rewarded beyond the paycheck is crucial.

“Getting up to speed quickly on things that I’m not experienced with getting is a challenge, but it’s a good one, it’s far and beyond anything I’ve done before.”

“Potentially more could be done to show off how great we are but it feels like we never have time as our clients have to come first.”

NEXT STEPSWe’re pulling together an action plan to build on the great stuff and work on the bad and be sure to share our progress with you all.

Thanks for listening. All our love.

dontcrywolf.com

hello@DontCryWolf.com+44 (0) 20 3633 1090

Designed by leap.eco